Who Dares Wins
by vengefulkukumber
Summary: When elite SAS sniper Mark Ross' chopper is shot down over Afghanistan, it is reported that there were no survivors. In reality, a single life escaped the fireball. Now Ross finds himself in a war not so different from the one he just left. At the behest of the only man who believes his story he must find and eliminate one of the leaders of the White Fang before it's too late.
1. The Emerald Forest

**Disclaimer**** \- RWBY is property of Roosterteeth**

**Hello! This is the result of a thought I had a while back: "Is it possible to create a story where the main character is from our world, yet is still able to keep up with the RWBY lot without some kind of stupid, illogical power-up?" The answer is yes!**

**This isn't really a self-insert story even though it's told from the first person but it's the same kind of idea.**

**Now enough of me waffling, lets see what happens when an elite soldier is thrown out of his element.**

* * *

I opened my eyes slowly as I groaned. I could feel the lush grass brush against my body while I slowly regained consciousness. That was the first realisation that confused me; it's a common misconception that Afghanistan was completely devoid of forests and greenery, but there weren't any of those regions for miles around where I was posted.

Then I remembered. The crash. It came back in bits and pieces; the pilots yelling, the explosion, his men being engulfed in flames, hitting the ground and everything going black. I struggled to my feet as quickly as I could and looked around, expecting to see the flaming wreckage of the Chinook. Instead I found myself in the middle of a small clearing deep within a verdant forest. Looking around, I saw no trace of the crash nor did I see any of my men who were with me in the chopper. I saw my bergan and my rifle lying on the ground a few feet away near the edge of the clearing, presumably thrown clear in the aftermath of the crash. I staggered towards them, determined not to be caught unawares wherever I was.

That's when I first came across them. Later I was informed that they were called grimm and this one specifically a beowolf, but at the time I was convinced that a werewolf had just creeped out of the bushes and began investigating the rifles. Immediately thoughts rushed into my head as adrenaline rapidly returned my strength:

'Surely it's just an overgrown wolf.' 'Wolves aren't shaped like that.' 'Wolves in Afghanistan are grey.' 'Wolves don't have shells, do werewolves?'

Slowly I reached to my waist and drew the Glock 17 pistol that mercifully was still there after the Chinook went down. Praying that the creature wouldn't notice, I carefully cocked the handgun. It noticed. The jet black creature stared at me with its beady red eyes and growled, slowly stalking its way towards me. I quickly drew the nine inch combat knife from its sheath on my shoulder at the exact moment the monster leapt.

It landed directly on top of me, knocking me to the ground. The only thing stopping it from ripping my throat out was my left arm, holding it at bay. Using the same arm I plunged the knife deep into the flesh just above its ribcage, but the beowolf seemed to completely ignore the damage. Resorting to more drastic measures, I pressed the pistol into the monster's chest and pulled the trigger.

Once. Twice. Three times.

It took three shots before it began to weaken. Using all my strength, I pushed back and flipped the creature over. Now in control of the situation, I took my knife and slashed across its throat.I could see the life leave the grimm as it lay convulsing, drowning on its own blood. I sighed and slowly stood up, only to find two more beowolves five metres away, watching and prowling towards me. I brought up the Glock in hope that I could get a lucky shot or two before the hellish creatures could tear me limb from limb. Yet before I could line up the sights, an earsplitting bang was heard and a figure appeared out of nowhere surrounded by a flurry of rose petals. In the blink of an eye both of the beowolves were cut clean in half by the newcomer's weapon; a large and seemingly high-tech scythe. When they turned around I saw that my saviour was none other than a teenage girl, no more than fifteen years old. She wore a bright red cloak with a hood and beneath that a black dress that seemed rather unsuitable for running around in a forest. Her eyes were strangely colourless, but she had a western complexion, meaning that I was either no longer in the Middle East, or she wasn't a native. The young girl grinned at me, completely unfazed by what she had just accomplished, while I heard a voice from behind.

"Who are you?"

I turned to see a another girl, older by a couple of years, dressed in a similar dress and a jacket that were both completely white. She had a fancy sword belted to her hip and various pieces of jewellery adorning her body. Her hair was a pure shade of white and ended in a ponytail coming from the site of her head. Once again she was white, even paler than the first girl, and her accent was clearly American.

"You're too old to be a student and any hunter would have been able to deal with those beowolves easily. So I have two questions; who are you and what are you doing here?"

Unimpressed by the brat's attitude, I avoided the question. "Is that what those things are called? Beowolves?" I gestured to the mangled corpses, that were already beginning to decompose. Black flakes of flesh and fur were breaking free and floating away like petals in the breeze. The girl in white seemed confused and irritated by my ignorance and opened her mouth to express as such before being cut off by her friend.

"Are you okay? I don't recognise your accent, are you from around here?"

I laughed. "Never heard an Englishman speak before? What kind of hole did you grow up in? Anyway, just tell me where I am and I'll figure out the rest."

"You're in the Emerald Forest, near Vale, and you're interfering with our mission." The paler girl said haughtily.

"Weiss!" The other one scolded, before turning back to me. "I'm Ruby and that's Weiss. If you want we can help you get back to Vale safely."

There was something strange about a fifteen year old girl offering to protect thirty year old seasoned veteran, but I had seen what she had done and I could only assume the other girl, Weiss, was equally capable. However there were a few more questions I needed to ask.

"Where exactly is Vale? Are we still in Afghanistan?"

Weiss sighed heavily at this. "You must have hit your head. Vale? In the kingdom of Vale? One of the only four cities in Remnant? And you said _we_ lived in a hole."

"Remnant? Is that meant to be a country?" I said, beginning to get aggravated by their refusal to give a straight answer.

"No, it's the whole world we're living in! How can you not know any of this!?"

"I don't understand. Just tell me where on Earth I am."

We already have! You're in the kingdom of Vale, and what do you mean by 'on Earth'?"

Before I could reply, a small and worried voice came from across the clearing.

"Weiss. I don't think he's from Remnant."

We both turned to see Ruby examining my rifle which she must have found on the ground. Immediately I began to move towards her.

"I've never seen a weapon like this before. I don't think it came fro- Hey!" She pouted after I ripped the rifle out of her grasp.

"Be careful! You might hurt someone." I ignored the irony of saying this to the girl wielding a massive scythe and checked that the weapon was still clear.

"That weapon's not a standard design. Where did you get it from? What kind of dust does it use?" Ruby suddenly became very interested in the rifle, confusing me even further with her questions.

"I don't know what you mean by dust, but it fires 7.62 rounds if that's what you're talking about."

The conversation continued with Ruby relentlessly trying to get every scrap of information about his guns and Weiss refusing to believe that I had no idea where I was or what Remnant was. Eventually it was decided that they would take me to their superior. I couldn't quite catch his name, but it sounded like they said "Oz." I silently chuckled; I wasn't in Kansas anymore, that much was certain. I didn't necessarily wish to meet the wonderful wizard, but without red riding hood and the ice queen I wouldn't last long if any more of those monsters turned up. So, with reluctance, I picked up my kit and fell in behind the girls.

* * *

It wasn't long before I came across two more inhabitants of Remnant. Both were girls about the same age as Weiss. One wore mostly black and white with a black bow atop her hair and a black sword across her back. The other dressed in a far more revealing manner than the rest of the girls; opting for a yellow top and jacket that exposed her midriff and emphasised her cleavage, and a miniscule pair of shorts that was barely longer than a few inches. Her golden hair flowed down like a lion's mane as low as her knees and on her wrists she wore identical bracelets. Apparently the the four girls knew each other, because the first thing the newcomers did was ask about me. Not once did they speak to my face, instead they discussed amongst themselves in hushed whispers. Eventually they came to a conclusion and the blonde swaggered towards me.

"Okay Mr... What did you say his name was again?" She said, turning to Ruby.

"Ross. My name's Lieutenant Mark Ross." I replied quickly, slightly amused that they hadn't thought to ask yet.

"Cool, I'm Yang and that's Blake, you already know the other two. Anyway, we think that either you actually are telling the truth, or you're delusional. Either way, you're coming with us to meet Professor Ozpin."

Any questions I had would have to wait because trees in the not-so-far distance suddenly began collapsing in quick succession. Something was charging towards us. Something big.

I brought the scope on my rifle up to my eye to get a better idea on what we were dealing with but all I could see through the undergrowth was a massive stinger, reminiscent of a scorpion's. This was explained when it crashed through the last few trees and came fully into view. An enormous scorpion was suddenly bearing down on the five humans.

Immediately Ruby yelled "Deathstalker!" and unfolded her scythe. I began sprinting away in order to put as much distance between me and it as possible and found cover next to a tree just over fifty metres away. I could see the four girls fighting the monster, but not even they could scratch it. I saw Ruby dig her scythe into the ground and, to my surprise, fire a few powerful shots into the creature. The bangs were similar to those of a fifty cal, but something seemed off, it didn't have the sound I was used to. Her shots seemed to bounce off the scorpion's shell, doing nothing but enraging it. I shouldered my rifle and took aim, determined to aid in the fight this time.

The weapon I had been given earlier that morning was the L129A2 Sharpshooter Rifle. Only four hundred had been distributed among the entire British Army; given only to the most skilled shots in the infantry. The semiautomatic weapon fires 7.62mm rounds and has a maximum effective range of eight hundred meters but an experienced sniper can hit targets at much further away. Hitting such a huge beast at that range, with that rifle, with no wind? Child's play.

I rapidly squeezed the trigger five times, each round finding their mark with ease. I had chosen my moment perfectly, waiting until what I assumed was its head was completely in view. All five shots slammed into the creature's shell, each creating a separate crack in its armour. The deathstalker slumped over, dazed but not dead, while the girls looked on in shock. I had seconds to act before the grimm got up again. Making a rapid decision, I opened my bergan and retrieved my other rifle. I unfolded the stock and bipod, laid prone, loaded a magazine and chambered a round ready to fire, all in the space of a couple of seconds. It was clear that not even 7.62 rounds from a high powered rifle could penetrate the deathstalker's armour, but what about bigger rounds, from a bigger rifle?

The L115A3 is the standard issue "sniper" rifle for the British army. With a collapsible stock, a built in bipod and the ability to fire 8.59mm rounds, it's considered the best rifle of its type in the world. Capable of achieving a first shot hit up to six hundred metres and able to deliver a killing blow up to a kilometre away; when fired by a trained sniper, it hit often, and it hit _hard._

I aimed through the scope and found the point in the shell to which all the cracks ran; the chink in the monster's armour. Even at such a close range the shot was a difficult one to make; the spot I had to hit was no bigger than the palm of a hand. I held my breath, and squeezed the trigger. The front of the deathstalker's head exploded outwards as shrapnel made from the creature's shell flew everywhere. It reeled back as the bullet entered and destroyed its brain before collapsing, very clearly dead. Just like the beowolves, it began to dissolve immediately, the remains floating away in the breeze like corrupted flower petals. The girls simply stared at the situation at a loss for words, clearly shocked by what had just transpired. I ejected the empty casing and stood up, preparing the rifle too go back into the bergan. In the distance I heard a voice.

"How did he_ do_ that?"

* * *

**I hope you all enjoyed that! Don't worry I'll explain why the L115 is more powerful than Crescent Rose in the next chapter (or Mark will specifically). Sorry if I was too technical in the descriptions, I didn't want to sound like "hurr durr look at me I know about guns" but at the same time I wanted to be _right._**

**Be sure to check out my other story "The Unity" if you want to see my attempt at an OC team, or try it even if you don't!**

**Please review and tell me if I should tone down the technical stuff and I'll see you next time!**

**(P.S. If it wasn't already obvious, I'm English and therefore so is Mark and the equipment he will use.)**


	2. Beacon

**Disclaimer - RWBY is the property of Roosterteeth**

**I apologise for the long hiatus. My initial plan was to post a chapter a week but unfortunately that went out of the window almost immediately. First I had exams, then I had to ton of work to get a university place since I did worse than expected in said exams, and then I was whisked away to Holland so I couldn't update. The upside is that while I was away I had plenty of time to write, so I have two chapters ready for uploading. The second should be up within the hour assuming no complications.**

**This chapter is fairly light on action with the _really _interesting stuff happening in the next one.**

**Have fun!**

* * *

The rest of the journey was uneventful, almost as if the monsters lurking in the forest were as scared of me and my rifle as the girls were. They tried to hide it, but every so often I would catch them glancing nervously at the weapons on my back and in my hands. There wasn't any meaningful conversation, so I had plenty of time to think. Judging from the girls', called team RWBY apparently, reaction to the scorpion; such attacks weren't rare, if not normal. That meant one of two things; they were involved in a secret project kept from the public, unlikely since Weiss expected me to know about the monsters as if they were common knowledge, or I was in some kind of different world where these creatures actually were common knowledge. There was also the possibility that I was hallucinating or dreaming, but I forced those thoughts out of my mind, if I didn't treat this seriously and I was wrong, then I would most likely end up getting myself killed. Only one thing was certain; I was no longer in the Middle East. The constant dry heat pressing down on me was gone and in its place was a cool, refreshing breeze more suited to a beautiful summer's day back home in Hereford than the horrendous climate I had been in and out of more times than I cared to remember. The greenery that surrounded me was far too lush and verdant to belong to any region of the Middle East. All around me was the cheerful chirping of birds and scurrying of small animals as they avoided our advance. The entire forest was calm and tranquil; a stark contrast with the horrors that hid within.

Eventually the forest thinned out and gave way to open ground before a cliff that towered overhead. Immediately my soldier's instincts told me to turn around and find another way up the cliff. Plenty of open ground with almost zero cover facing high ground where enemies could easily hide? No thanks. However, the girls carried on without a single hesitation, heading for the equally tactically terrible path leading to the top of the cliff. I shrugged off my fears as paranoia and followed the team, trying to ignore the severe lack of protection as we climbed. Any soldier worth his stripes would tell you that you _never_ fight uphill if you can avoid it and what I was doing right now was going against everything I had learned in Sandhurst as an officer cadet three years ago. I trusted that the girls knew what they were doing and assumed that we were in friendly territory. Suddenly my body and mind relaxed as I realised why they were so nonchalant: there was no enemy. I had spent so long in constant fear of taliban snipers and ambushes as I patrolled the areas still under their control and even the areas that weren't, that I had simply assumed that my body armour and uniform meant that I was still fighting. Back there every person you walked past was a potential threat, hiding any kind of weapon under their clothes. Every hill, bush or tree was a potential hiding spot for a sniper. The place I had come from was a war zone, full of terrors, but that wasn't the case here. The only things to fear out here were in the forest behind us, and those creatures aren't anywhere near as hellish as humanity can be.

As we reached the top of the cliff I could finally see our destination. In the distance it looked like some medieval castle that wouldn't be out of place in a kid's film. As we got closer I started to feel very out of place in my uniform and being so visibly armed. Pockets of teenagers appeared more and more frequently as we approached the large complex of buildings. Most of the adolescents wore the same smart uniform leading me to believe that was entering a school of some kind, though I wondered what kind of subjects were taught if all the students were like the four in front of me. I could feel everyone's eyes on me as I walked past, clearly I wasn't the most inconspicuous person at that moment and the students must have been curious as to why a man in full military gear was being led into their school but there was little that I could do to quell any fears. I did what I could, however, and let my sling support my rifle at my waist and removed my helmet, trying to avoid seeming threatening as much as possible. It didn't work to any great extent as no one seemed to treat me any differently, continuing to watch from afar their eyes were filled with, not fear, but mild curiosity. I guess in a world where giant wolves and scorpions are commonplace, I wasn't as threatening as I thought I was. Finally breaking the awkward silence, I asked what kind of place this was.

"It's called Beacon, it's our school and our home. We're going to see the headmaster." Ruby answered cheerfully.

I inquired further into the school and found that this was where they learned to fight the grimm and that everyone else at the school was equally skilled. It certainly diminished my confidence to hear that; I was supposed to be the best of the best yet there was an entire school of children who completely put me to shame. I couldn't imagine how strong the adults of this place were.

The corridors of the main building were decorated lavishly, further reinforcing the fairy tale image I already had in my head. Luckily, their technology wasn't as medieval as their appearance. At the foot of the tower that we were to climb we found a large and extravagant elevator. Yang pushed the button corresponding to the top floor and the machine came to life, silently and efficiently taking us to the top floor. When we reached our destination, Ruby knocked on the large oak door and waited nervously for a reply. I heard a faint "Come in" from the other side and followed the girls in.

Ozpin, I found, was a middle aged man, older than me by a few years, with dishevelled, unnaturally white hair that seemed to refuse to stay combed. He had an aura about him that put one at ease, I immediately felt like I could trust him. The woman to his left however, was not as warm. Dressed in a black skirt and a purple cape, her icy gaze focused on me as I walked towards the desk the headmaster was seated behind. Ozpin stood up as I approached and walked with a cane in hand to meet me in the middle of the room. He held out his hand to shake and as I took it he began to speak.

"Your uniform is not one that I recognise yet you're clearly a soldier, so I must ask; where's the war?"

I smiled, starting to like the man instantly. "Very, very far away apparently. Ozpin I presume?"

I'm afraid you have me at a disadvantage, my students must have told you who I am, but I know nothing about you."

"My name's Lieutenant Mark Ross of the British SAS, though I don't think you know who they are. Your girls tell me I'm in Vale, but I don't know where that is."

Ozpin raised an eyebrow at this but did not speak, instead he simply walked over to his desk and rummaged through his drawers.

"I assume they didn't think to show you a map, Lieutenant?"

I shook my head as he retrieved a tattered scroll and laid it flat on his desk. Before me was a land utterly foreign.

"This is the world of Remnant. Vale is here." He pointed to the map. "On the eastern end of the continent."

"Continent? You mean this is the whole world?" I had never seen these landmasses before, but that would be understandable if they were simply small islands.

"Indeed. But I suspect not your world. Tell me, are you familiar with the many-world theory?"

From there the headmaster explained his theory. The universe that I had come from was very different from the one I was currently in. Ozpin told me about how scientists were currently trying to prove the existence of worlds beyond their own, though they met limited success. It seemed ridiculous, yet at the same time easily possible; I had seen feats that shouldn't be accomplished and creatures that shouldn't exist, the weapons I had seen were simultaneously years ahead and behind my own and the buildings were similarly archaically advanced. With all this evidence it was suddenly trivial to accept that I was no longer on Earth. Silence filled the room as Ozpin finished his explanation. I remained quiet as I considered my options, at the time the decision seemed obvious.

"How do I get back?"

Ozpin sighed, "I thought that would come up. As I said earlier, the best scientists are still unable to prove the existence of other universes, much less reach them in some way. How you got here is a mystery itself." Ozpin sat down at his desk once more. "I will inquire into this matter further. In the meantime, you are free to do as you please. The girls will be relieved of their duties for the day to show you around and answer any questions you might have, and you will be assigned a guest room for the night. We'll speak again in the morning."

As I turned to leave Ruby nervously spoke up. "Um, sir? While we were out there we were attacked by a deathstalker. Mr Ross' weapons managed to smash through its shell in only a few shots."

Ozpin raised an eyebrow but otherwise didn't react. "I'll be sure to take that into account."

With nothing else needing to be said, the girls and I left the office and began my lengthy tour of the academy.

* * *

The library was filled to the brim with books ranging from almost every topic you could think of. There were books about the many monsters of this world, about the uses of 'dust', even ones about the care and maintenance of weapons. The books that drew my attention, however, were those written about the history and world of Remnant. I selected a few tomes that looked appropriate and sat down to read. Team RWBY had been extremely helpful; showing me around and allowing me to quickly commit the layout of the campus to memory, as well as answering all my questions. The girls had taken me to my temporary room first so that I could drop off all my unnecessary equipment before we began. Unfortunately there came a time when the girls had to leave and prepare for tomorrow, but I still had plenty of time before I needed to turn in for the night. Normally I despised studying, part of the reason I ended up doing so badly at school, but if I was going to spend the foreseeable future in this world then it was a necessity to learn all I could about Remnant as quickly as possible. The library was empty as all the students had already finished for the evening, so I wasn't intruding on anyone. Two topics interested me more so than the rest, the first being 'nature's wrath'. These people had no electricity whatsoever, instead they powered what would otherwise pass for electronics with what they called dust. It was similar to coal, in that it released energy when combusted, however dust was far more volatile and came in many different variants. Fire, ice, lightning; they were all types of dust and all had their place in society. Dust and aura were discovered by the first hunters and huntresses and since then had been integral to protecting civilisation, whether it was used in its pure form, sewn into clothes or used to propel bullets. One could very easily argue that the species owes its existence to the use of dust. Both species in fact.

My second topic of research was the faunus. A second intelligent species that are indistinguishable from humans, except for an extra, bestial body parts. Throughout history the faunus had been treated as lesser people, and were even moved and confined to Menagerie, an island far to the south. Obviously the faunus weren't very happy about being exiled and staged a revolution, beginning a war that would eventually end with equality between the faunus and humans. There were many parallels between the treatment of the faunus and slavery in my own world, and considering how events played out with the civil rights movement, I suspected that true equality hadn't been achieved just yet.

The guest room wasn't quite spartan, but it wasn't too far off. The bed was heavenly and the steaming shower was a welcome luxury after months of having to make do with what essentially amounted to a bucket of cold water. But that was it aside from a chest of drawers and a desk, but I supposed not much else would be needed. The night was surprisingly calm and restful. I found myself nodding off almost immediately despite my concerns about finding myself in a completely different world. Only once I was in bed did the exertions of the day finally catch up with me, knocking me out cold.

When the morning came I slept in for what felt like the first time in years. I would have slept for much longer, my fatigue and gratitude for being able to sleep on a decent mattress for once overruling my training and self discipline, however, an overexcited knock at the door ended those plans. Outside my door waited a young, bubbly team leader who, although initially taken aback by the fact that I had decided to only throw on a pair of trousers before opening the door, was far too energetic for the average teenager at this time in the morning.

"Good morning Mister Ross! I'm here to-"

"First of all, I'm either Mark, Lieutenant or Sir, never Mister." I interrupted. "Secondly, where can I get my hands on some food."

With all the commotion of the previous day, I had forgotten that I hadn't eaten since the morning of the chinook ride that led to my arrival in Remnant.

"That's what I'm here for!" Ruby replied cheerfully. "Professor Ozpin asked me to be your guide for the morning."

"Did he now?" I mused. "So where's our first stop?"

Breakfast was a uncomplicated affair; the large cafeteria offering everything a young student could wish for. From pancakes to cereal to bacon to eggs, it was all available. I pulled together as much of a full english as I could, bacon, sausages, fried eggs, the works, and wolfed it down. The school day had already started, leaving Ruby and myself alone in the large hall. I offered little to the conversation, letting Ruby babble on about nothing in particular. I occasionally answered the odd question about my world, but I was otherwise content to listen.

I soon found myself back outside Ozpin's office, waiting to be admitted. As soon as I entered the office I could tell something was wrong. It was written all over the headmaster's face. My suspicions were confirmed when he spoke.

"Lieutenant, I'm afraid I have some bad news." He said in a tone that seemed almost bitter. "Unfortunately, both my colleagues and my superiors, including my right hand woman, refuse to even entertain the notion that you are from another world, let alone divert any of their precious time and resources towards finding you a way home."

In truth, this didn't surprise me much. The story seemed incredibly unlikely even to me, so as many as a single person believing us would be a miracle.

"So what do we do now?" I asked, confident that the headmaster of a school designed to train warriors would have some kind of plan.

"I was told to put you on the next airship to Vale and let you make your own way, but fortunately I'm not so heartless. I've decided, if you are willing of course, to employ you. How do you feel about working for Beacon security? A soldier such as yourself should have no problem filling that particular role."

I pondered the offer for a moment; staying affiliated with the one man that believed my story was most likely the best course of action, however, anyone strong enough to threaten the students and staff of this school would have no trouble dealing with me. Although, when I voiced my concerns, Ozpin merely chucked.

"The security team is staffed entirely by ex-soldiers, discharged due to either injury, or simply old age. In an emergency any number of the students can be mobilised to combat the threat, in fact there was just an occurrence not too long ago of which Miss Rose was at the centre of. Your job would be to solve the smaller problems such as vandals and the overly intoxicated, so that the students have more time for their studies. It's a small and easy job, hence why I reserve it for people who have nowhere else to go, a category you fit into very nicely, Lieutenant.

Despite the fact that I was being lumped with men past their prime, my only other option was to "make my own way" in a world utterly foreign to me. The choice was obvious.

"When do I start?" I asked, extending a hand.

"I have some paperwork to fill in to make it official," he replied shaking it firmly, "but you can start now. I'm sure Miss Rose can show you to their office, she's been there plenty of times before."

Ruby's face turned as red as her namesake and quickly turned to leave. Only once we were heading down in the elevator did she speak in her usual animated fashion.

"I'd just like to say that it's not my fault I have to visit security often, it's just that Yang is always caught after curfew and I have to go there to collect her every time. Also that incident Professor Ozpin was talking about, we had nothing to do with it. Completely coincidental that we were there."

I merely grinned and nodded. Not once believing her for a second.

* * *

"You must be the new guy!" A big booming voice for a big guy. Easily six feet tall and built like a tree despite him obviously being advanced in years, the man who came to greet me reminded me of a bear, threatening even with his limp and cane.

"Ozpin told me all about you. It's a strange story I'll give you that but if Oz says it's true, then it must be! I'm Captain Gabriel Oak, head of Beacon security, although that title isn't as meaningful as it once was!"

He wore a tight fitting, long sleeved top with matching trousers, both navy blue, with white pieces of body armour adorning his chest and limbs. The armour was made out of what looked like a tough kind of plastic material. Perhaps it was strong enough to stop a grimm's claw or a blade, especially when combined with aura, but it appeared far to rigid and brittle to stop a bullet. For that, my kevlar vest could protect me from most threats in this world, combine it with the steel and ceramic plates that come as standard issue and my own set of body armour could deflect even the most powerful bullet.

"I'm Mark Ross." I greeted him warmly, already starting to like the boisterous old man.

He chucked heartily after hearing my name. "That's one of the things we need to talk about my friend. Follow me and we'll sort everything out.

He led me through a door behind the desk situated in the middle of the small room. I found myself in a large locker room with several guards chatting, dressed in a uniform identical to the captain's. Not one of them was less than five years older than me, a few were sporting helmets made out of the same kind of material as their armour. The musk of sweat and tobacco filled the air and clogged my nostrils. Ozpin wasn't kidding when he described this as a casual job. Oak led me to his personal office in the corner of the locker room and asked me to pull up a chair.

"First thing we need to sort out is your name." The captain said as he sat down in a plushy chair behind his desk. "You may have noticed that all our names are related to colour. I shan't bore you with a history lesson but let's just say that after a war many years ago it became tradition. Some even went as far as to change their surnames, my own for example."

I nodded in acknowledgement, I had noticed a theme but thought nothing of it, as more important matters were at hand.

"Okay... But I don't see why I need to change _my_ name."

"Not everyone knows Ozpin like I do so they're not going to take his word that you really are from another world, or yours for that matter, so we need a cover story."

"I hope it's nothing too complicated" I joked. "This is starting to sound like something the spooks at MI5 would cook up."

Oak chuckled again, clearly not understanding but realising it was a joke nonetheless.

"No, nothing complicated. We're going for a rather clichéd amnesia story. Ozpin's letting you work for him until you get back on your feet. Now what are we changing your name to? Personally I like the sound of Mark Nutt."

"Nah." I said thoughtfully. "Sounds too much like a bad joke. What about Rust? Mark Rust?"

"Yeah, that'll work. "He said, disappointed. "Similar to your real name too."

He reached into a drawer and pulled out a key after some rummaging around.

"Your locker is number twenty. The previous owner is finally retiring so you'll be filling his role as squad leader." I took the key as he continued. "We operate in groups of four, each squad patrolling certain areas of the grounds on a rotating schedule. Your squad is made up of the twins Ebony and Ivory Winchester and Simon Cole. Ebony might be a handful, he wanted the promotion badly but if we tell him you're an ex-officer then that and his brother will keep him in line. By the way the Winchesters have a younger brother in his first year here, try not to let them play favourites. Finally you'll find in your locker your uniform and a scroll."

"Scroll?" I asked.

"You not have them where you're from? Communication device, sends messages and voice calls among other things, runs on dust." Oak stood up and shook my hand. "If that's it, welcome aboard!"

The next week passed by quickly. Ebony was indeed pissed at my appointment but I'd dealt with far more insubordinate soldiers in the past so keeping him in line wasn't too hard, especially with his brother's cool head to help. Occasionally the monotony of patrolling the grounds was broken by a meeting with the headmaster. He'd inform me of his progress, however little there was, and in return I would tell him off my world and my role in it. I told him about the SAS and our reputation, how we're experts in anti-terrorist operations. He seemed interested by our tactics, noting that there wasn't anything like it on Remnant. There was no need for them. Not until recently.

I was watching the news broadcast with my squad and a few other friends I had made, not really paying attention, when a breaking news story came up.

"Half an hour ago, White Fang members stormed an office building in downtown Vale. They have taken an unconfirmed number of hostages and so far police have been unable to take any action for fear of the hostages being harmed. Anyone with information or contact with a hostage is urged to come to the police. We'll bring you more information as we get it."

Live footage of the scene showing a police cordon around the building played while the report was given and what I saw irritated me with what was sheer stupidity to me.

"They don't know anything from down there!" I yelled in frustration. "There are buildings all around and those windows are fucking massive! Get some snipers in them and figure out the situation!" The terrorist's actions were almost textbook and so was the best response; locate the terrorists and hostages, then send in men through every available entrance hard and fast. Mission start and end should be minutes apart. Suddenly I heard a voice from behind me.

"Why don't you go down there and tell them that yourself?"

* * *

**I know I would explain the strength of the rifles in this chapter, but the story is deviating from what I originally intended and I reckon it's better this way.**

**Please review, and if anyone has any questions; maybe I didn't explain something properly or if you're simply curious, feel free to ask me!**


	3. Vale

**Disclaimer - RWBY is property of Roosterteeth**

**Hello again!**

**This one's a bit short, but there's plenty of action happening this time.**

* * *

As I got closer to the occupied building, I could clearly see the crowd that had formed around the police cordon. The loved ones of those inside and idiots who thought it was a good idea to get close to maniacs with guns simply to sate their curiosity were gathered alongside the news networks and police officers. I pushed my way through the jostling crowd until I was suddenly face to face with a rather tired and annoyed member of the Vale PD.

"Sorry sir, no civilians beyond this point. If you have family-" he began before I cut him off.

"I'm from Beacon." I said showing him a card signed by Ozpin, allowing me to act with his authority. "I need you to take me to whoever's in charge."

Due to his position as headmaster, Ozpin was informed of the situation before anyone else, although his message did explicitly state that he was not to send any hunters until they were requested. The professor, recalling his conversations with me, decided to do the next best thing.

The poor officer was clearly shocked. "A hunter! R-right this way sir." He said worriedly before talking into his radio, relaying the new situation.

The man in charge was a plump fellow, fitting the police chief stereotype perfectly. As soon as I got close he scowled and stormed over to me.

"I told them no hunters! We can handle it!"

"I'm not a hunter, just a soldier far more qualified to do this than you." I responded, starting to get pissed off by this man's incompetence. He opened and closed his mouth a few times in shock, trying to think of a response.

"Do you have any idea what's happening in there?!" I continued. "How many hostages? Where are they being held? How many terrorists?" He remained painfully silent, looking both ashamed and furious. "Nothing?! Then you need to find out. There are buildings all around, get people in them and look inside. Can you contact anyone inside? Can you access the security cameras? Do anything you can!"

A nervous officer came up to me and the chief. "Sir? We've had several calls from people on the top floor saying they're trapped by a White Fang member on the stairs. One of them said he saw two more go into the third floor. Everyone from the floors below have already evacuated."

"Great!" I yelled, slapping the man on the back. "Intel we can use! Two confirmed in the building and one on the stairway." I spotted a fire escape leading to the roof of a nearby apartment building and immediately started heading towards it. I stole a radio off a nearby, unfortunate policeman and turned back towards the confused chief

"I going to take a better look, tell me if anything comes up." I shouted, holding the radio above my head, and ran off before anyone realised that I had no authority whatsoever.

The roof was directly opposite the third floor of the office building, giving me a perfect view of what was happening on the other side of the huge, floor to ceiling window. I opened my pack that I had brought with me from Beacon and pulled out the only two items: my semiautomatic rifle, the L129A2, and a single magazine loaded with ten rounds. I set the magazine down to the side and laid down prone, shouldering the rifle and looking down the ACOG scope into the office building.

I quick scan found the large group of hostages huddled on their knees. The intruders must have rounded up everyone on the third floor and dumped them in the corner near the window. Watching over them was one of the White Fang. Dressed in a black and white uniform emblazoned with a red wolf's head and wearing a mask, his gun was pointing at the crowd, keeping them subdued.

"So that's a faunus..." I muttered to myself. Sprouting out of the top of his head was a set of antlers, clearly marking him as a deer faunus. Further into the building, another White Fang member, also a faunus, sat in a lounge of sorts watching a live news report from outside. His rifle was leaning against his chair unready and useless should an enemy come crashing into the room. "Perfect" I thought. Suddenly a nearby door opened and the final White Fang member peered in, said something to the sitting faunus and just as suddenly left. I grabbed the radio and reported my findings.

"I have line of sight on two tangos and a likely location of the third. I see seventeen hostages, is that all of them?"

The police chief's gruff voice responded. "Yeah, that's them all. So do you have some kind of plan Mr 'expert'?"

I grinned as I scanned the scene once more. "Yes... In fact I do..."

* * *

For the SAS, and other special forces teams, this was a textbook situation and so was the response. Go hard and fast enough and the enemy can be neutralised without them even realising. The right kind of tactics and skills can allow a small team to infiltrate a compound to rescue a hostage without having a single bullet fired at them. Stealth and suppressors weren't even required, most teams preferring to go loud in order to create panic within the enemy camp. Unfortunately the soldiers preparing to move in weren't SAS, but if everything went according to plan, all they would need is a half decent aim and a small amount of luck.

"Remember, I go on two, Eagle Team on three." I spoke into the radio, reminding everyone involved of the timings we had agreed.

"Roger that Eagle Talon. We're ready to begin the countdown whenever." Came the reply from the man designated Eagle Command.

"I'm ready to proceed Command." I said as I took a deep breath while aiming down the scope of my rifle, loaded, cocked and finally lethal as I released the safety catch. With the safety released there were no more barriers preventing the rifle discharging. All it would take was the slightest movement of my finger and the hammer would spring forward, slamming into the back of the bolt, causing the firing pin to strike the loaded round's percussion cap. The gunpowder would then explode and expand, forcing the bullet down the barrel and out the muzzle at a rate of seven-hundred metres every second, over twice the speed of sound. The three members of Eagle Team radioed in and Command began the operation.

"Three..."

I slowly exhaled, watching as my aim lowered, stopping when the scope lined up over the faunus' unmoving head, leaving my lungs half full. A ten metre shot; no need to calculate bullet drop or wind speed and no need to lead a standing target.

"Have you ever wondered what the inside of your head looks like?" I thought morbidly to myself.

"Two..."

I squeezed the trigger, feeling the rifle kick back into my shoulder. In the tiniest fraction of a second, the bullet traveled across the street, smashed through the massive window, leaving only a small hole and a spider's web of cracks, tunneled through the faunus' head, smashing his skull and destroying his brain in the process, and finally embedded itself into the wall behind the recently deceased White Fang operative, leaving behind a large, red smear on the wall and a hole the size of a fist in the opposite side of the faunus' skull. He was dead before he even heard the shot. Only one sound was heard in the following second. Screaming.

"One!"

The three soldiers leaped from their positions outside the fourth floor windows and swung into the already weakened window, shattering it completely and landing next to the screaming civilians. The sitting terrorist reacted far too slowly to my shot and stood up to be faced with three well armed soldiers crashing in like a wrecking ball. The soldiers opened fire, each shooting a single five-round burst into the poor guy as he suddenly realised how completely useless his weapon was so far from his grasp. Every shot impacted into the faunus, depleting his aura rapidly and knocking him off his feet, not getting up again. Suddenly a door slammed open as the third White Fang rushed into the room, only to be greeted by three smoking barrels. After giving the intruder a similar treatment, the soldiers removed their rappelling gear and stepped over the body and into the stairwell. If they were following the plan then they should be moving down the building checking each floor to ensure that there were no more enemies left hiding. Expertly executed.

I stood up, having made the rifle safe, and pocketed the spent and smoking casing. Once I was back on the ground I found the police chief, trying to figure out whether he should be happy or annoyed, and thrust the radio into his hands.

"Well done sir! You just saved the lives of everyone in there." I said with a grin on my face. "Now we both know what will happen if it gets out that you let a civilian direct a very delicate hostage rescue." The colour drained from the man's face as my identity finally occurred to him. "However if you let me leave here no questions asked, then you can just leave me out of the reports, even claim credit of you want."

The chief perked up after that before quickly nodding and muttering a quiet "get out of 'ere" before meeting the news teams clamouring to find out exactly what had just happened.

So I pushed my way through the roaring crowd, everyone around me trying desperately to figure out what had just occurred, and did just that.

* * *

**Thank's for reading!**

**I'd like to point out how difficult it is to find information on the L129A1! It's only been around for about five years and only the British army use them and even then only sharpshooters, one step down from a sniper, are given them under normal circumstances. I spent an hour trying to find its muzzle velocity and couldn't find anything. I eventually had to use the muzzle speed of the FN SCAR-H because they use the same calibre bullet and have similar barrel lengths.**

**Once again, please review and if you have any questions feel free to ask!**


	4. The Tower

"Do you realise what you've done?"

I was back in Ozpin's office, having just given a report of what had occurred just over an hour ago to a visibly irritated headmaster.

"I did my job, sir. I did what you sent me to do."

Ozpin was clearly unhappy with my actions, his expression cold and stiff, but I couldn't understand why. The operation went perfectly; with the exception of some minor injuries due to the shattered glass, not a single hostage was injured and two of the terrorists were even captured alive.

"Your _job_ is to protect the students and staff of Beacon. I asked you to go there to offer your expertise and advice, not to take the situation over completely, and certainly not to kill someone!"

"Either he died or an innocent died instead. He was directly watching over the hostages, any action that didn't immediately neutralise him would have resulted in a massacre."

"Neutralise and murder are two very different things Mark."

I sighed. For a man his age he was far too naive. He wanted to resolve the situation with as little damage done to either party as possible, but in the real world sometimes good men must do bad things in order to get results. "The ends justify the means" is a phrase said by almost every cliché villain ever, but it's not so far from the truth, especially if the public never find out about the means.

"With all due respect sir, they're aren't when you're in the SAS."

Ozpin glared at me. "With all due respect Lieutenant, you're not in the SAS anymore."

He looked as if he would say more until his secretary's voice came from his desk.

"Headmaster Ozpin? General Ironwood is here to see you."

Suddenly his expression softened and became far more tired as he sighed, taking a sip from his omnipresent mug of coffee.

"Send him up please." The cold atmosphere had disappeared in an instant. I had never heard of this general before, but judging from Ozpin's reaction his appearance was either extremely fortunate or terrible.

He turned back to me. "Your actions today will have far reaching consequences that you do not understand. The world of politics is a dangerous one for a soldier and already the various forces are moving."

The elevator doors opened with a barely audible swish as I saw the general for the first time. Dressed in a regal, white uniform he strode into the room, immediately locking eyes with me. Ironwood looked about the same age as Ozpin, slightly older than myself, and quite young for a general; perhaps evidence of his skill as a leader.

"Leave us. I have important matters to discuss with the professor in private." He ordered me as soon as he came close. This pissed me off; does he thinks that because he's a general he has authority over me? It was always this kind of officer, the kind that thought they were somehow better than the common soldier solely because they had rank, that I disliked when I joined the army and still do even after being commissioned.

"Actually James, he's the man you want to be talking to, not me."

Ironwood stared at me for a few seconds, neither of us talking while he sized me up. Finally he spoke.

"So I take it you're the man that saved those hostages?"

"No sir. I believe it was the chief of police and a team of soldiers that resolved that situation." I denied everything, unsure of what would happen to Ozpin or myself if I were found out. However, Ironwood simply scoffed.

"That fool couldn't resolve a playground fight. I told him to stall until I arrived and the next thing I know three of my soldiers are assaulting the building under the orders of a mysterious voice on the radio, vouched for by the chief. If they hadn't performed so well, all three of them would have faced being discharged, or worse. My first thought was that a hunter had gotten involved despite my orders to keep them away but, according to Ozpin, it was you."

"I simply used my training to save the lives of innocent civilians. I fail to see what is wrong with that." I stood firm in my belief that I had made the right call.

The general frowned at my remark. "Your training? I didn't think Ozpin trained his security to deal with hostage situations? Unless..." His eyes went wide as something apparently clicked in his mind. "Is he the one you were talking about?" He asked Ozpin.

Ozpin, however, merely shrugged. "Ask him yourself." He stated.

Turning back, Ironwood looked me dead in the eyes. "Where were you born?"

"London, England, of planet Earth, sir." I replied immediately, seeing no point in keeping up the pretence.

"And what army do you serve?"

"The Special Air Service of the British Army, the most well trained regiment in the army and one of the most effective anti-terrorist forces of my world. Possibly yours too, excluding the hunters of course."

I tried hard not to grin at the man's expression. Clearly this general was one of the many people Ozpin contacted about me, but had simply brushed him of as a fool for believing a madman. Now he found himself realising there may be an element of truth in my words.

Ozpin finally decided to speak up in my defence. "He has weapons capable of breaking through a deathstalker's armour in a single shot, furthermore, they require no dust. We don't have technology like that in our world."

Ironwood was astounded. "No dust! But how is that possible?!" He directed the question towards me, unable to grasp that sources of energy other than dust might exist.

"Uhh... Gunpowder? I guess? I don't know, I just put the cartridges in the rifle and pull the trigger. My world doesn't have dust of any kind, so we found other ways to do things."

Ironwood grew silent, regaining his composure and stared at me, clearly thinking hard. When he finally spoke, his words surprised me completely.

"I'm putting together a team of soldiers to deal with the growing threat of the White Fang, and I think you are perfectly suited to lead it."

I stood there shocked by his proposal. Until today he thought I was a lunatic, and now he wants me to lead his men?

"I can't tell you any more than that, but you don't have to answer yet" he said as he gave me a card with number on it, while I stood there confused. "However I need an answer by the end of tomorrow." With that he walked into the elevator and pushed a button.

Ozpin and I stayed silent long after the general left. Eventually he spoke up, but his words did not help to calm the turmoil in my mind.

"Whether or not you accept his offer is completely up to you, but remember that no matter your choice, there will always be a place for you at Beacon, and I will always offer you whatever help you need."

* * *

I found myself staring at the card in my hands several times over the next 24 hours. On it was the number to the general's scroll. All I had to do once I had made my decision, was call this number and inform him yes or no. A choice between two simple words that each had far reaching consequences. I had promised myself years ago that I would do all I could to ensure that... _that _would never happen again. That the terrorists would never win again, but did I have any right to meddle with this world? Were the White Fang anything like the Taliban and al-Qaeda? I didn't know enough about these people or the White Fang to judge them fairly. Could I trust Ironwood? Could I even trust Ozpin? But a group of White Fang attacked the city, they took hostages and could have killed them at any time. Surely I should fight them simply to protect the people?

Thoughts tossed and turned in my head, but eventually, I made up my mind. I slowly inputted the general's number into my scroll and took a deep breath as it rang.

"Yes? This is Ironwood."

"It's Mark. I've made my decision."

* * *

**Thank you for reading and sorry for the long wait. Don't forget to review as it always helps me improve!**


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